Get Out of My Face(Time)

I’m gonna be honest—I’m not a big fan of FaceTime. The thing is, I don’t really want people seeing my face when I’m speaking to them on the phone.

Look, it’s not like I’m making horrible, rude or disinterested faces as the person on the other end of the phone speaks. Rather, it’s that I may not be aware that I’m making horrible, rude or disinterested faces.

You get the difference.

Also, more often than not I’m speaking to you from a strictly horizontal position on the couch, wearing sweat pants that would be rejected should I ever donate them to Goodwill. It’s not a pretty picture and it’s not suitable for public consumption.

And finally, my eyes may be closed while we’re speaking. I’m not sleeping—just…resting. But the point is there’s nothing to see.

However, many apartment management professionals—most of whom are in Goodwill-approved clothes—disagree. In fact, they’re now using FaceTime at work to improve onsite communications.

Preservation Management Inc. (PMI), managing more than 100 properties with more than 11,000 units in 19 states, has been using the videotelephony and VOIP application from Apple for several months to take advantage of the resources it already has.

When one PMI maintenance technician couldn’t attend the company’s annual training meeting because she was needed to be onsite during that week, another employee used FaceTime to keep her in the loop.

Additionally, PMI says if its managers and their regional supervisors are not able to see each other for a couple of weeks, FaceTime allows them to talk and communicate with a more personal touch.

Dress shirt and tie on the top, pajamas on the bottom, am I right?

Even though FaceTime is still a new tool for PMI, its employees say value can already be measured two-fold. Unlike Skype, which requires setting an appointment and having a computer available, FaceTime can be used impromptu, when needed, just like making a phone call.

Additionally, PMI says there is value in having a sense of team and being able to see other people—and their body language—when they are in a different location.

This would require me to wear pants with an actual zipper at home, so I’m going to disagree on a personal level. But definitely worth a look, professionally.

For more, check out “Facing Up to FaceTime” in the July issue of units Magazine, which mailed July 10.

Lauren Boston is NAA’s Staff Writer and Manager of Public Relations. Unsurprisingly, she writes a lot—most often for units Magazine and as a weekly blogger for APTly Spoken. She enjoys making people laugh, sharing embarrassing childhood stories and being the (self-proclaimed) Voice of the Apartment Industry. She welcomes feedback, unless it’s negative (in which case, please keep it to yourself).